The Semiotic Challenge of Scientific Images. A Test Case for Visual Meaning

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University of Helsinki; Universidad Sao Paulo, Brasil; Indiana University; University of Lugano; University of Ottawa)

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1. M. Danesi, Interpreting Advertisements. A Semiotic Guide 2. M. Angenot, Critique of Semiotic Reason

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20. M. Danesi (ed.), The Invention of Global Semiotics 21. T. A. Sebeok, Semiotic Prologues

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31. F. Nuessel and A. Cedeño, Selected Literary Commentary in the Literature of Spain

32. A. Ponzio and S. Petrilli, J. Ponzio, Reasoning with Emmanuel Levinas 33. M. Solimini, Anthropology, Otherness, and Existential Enterprise

34. Maria Grazia Guido, The Imaging Reader. Visualization and Embodiment of Metaphysical Discourse

35. J.Deely, S. Petrilli, A. Ponzio, The Semiotic Animal

36. R. Iannacito-Provenzano, Il dialetto molisano di Villa San Michele (Isernia) 37. A. Ponzio, The Dialogic Nature of Sign

38. W. Weiss, Towards a Mobile Voice

39. R. Williamson, La historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España de Bernal Díaz del Castillo. Apuntes para una historia de su lenguaje

40. P. G. Marteinson, On the Problem of the Comic. A Philosophical Study on the Origin of Laughter

41. F. Merrell, Processing Cuiltural Meaning

42. S. Petrilli and A. Ponzio, Semiotics Today. From Global Semiotics to Semioethics, a Dialogic Response

43. G. Marrone, The Ludovico Cure. On Body and Music in A Clockwork Orange 44. A. Ponzio, Emmanuel Levinas, Globalization, and Preventive Peace

45. R. Longo Lavorato, De vulgari eloquentia: lingua e dialetti nella cultura italiana 46. Wang Ning, Translated Modernities: Literary and Cultural Perspectives on

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47. J. Deely, Semiotics Seen Synchronically. The View as of 201044.

48. Carolina Travalia, El concepto de colocación en español: propuesta de una nueva taxonomía y delimiutación de sus funciones

49. M. Danesi, Lorraine Bryers, Ned Gudinskas, Interpreting Advertisements: A Semiotic Guide (second edition)

50. Sergej G. Proskurin, Essays in Contemporary Semiotics

51. M. Pasquarelli Clivio (ed.) Lingue in contatto e plurilinguismo nella cultura italiana

52. Stefania Ventura, Teaching Languages Through Activities, Games, and Projects 53. P. Arancibia, V. Fulginiti, K. Gaudet, J. Granata, W. Santini, L. A. Ouji

(eds.) Shaping an Identity. Adapting, Rewriting and Remaking Italian Identity 54. Maria Grazia Guido. The Acting Translator. Embodying Cultures in the

Dubbing Translation of American Sitcoms 55. Frank Nuessel, Studies in Proverbial Language 56. Susan Petrilli, ed. Writing, Voice, Undertaking

57. Mariana Bockarova and Maecel Danesi, Semiotic Analysis for Advertisers & Maeketers: An Outline

58. Maria Grazia Guido, The Acting Interpreter. Embodied Stylistics in an Experientialist Perspective

59. Katherine L Morrison, Loyalism and the Conquest: Historical Roots 60.Maria Giulia Dondero, Jacques Fontanille, The Semiotic Challenge of

Maria Giulia Dondero

Jacques Fontanille

The Semiotic Challenge

of Scientific Images

A Test Case for Visual Meaning

Translation: Julie Tabler

© 2014 LEGAS No part of this book may be reproduced in any form,

by print, photoprint, microfilm, microfiche, or any other means,

with-out written permission from the publisher.

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Dondero, Maria Giulia,

1975-[Images à problèmes. English]

The semiotic challenge of scientific images : a test case for

visual meaning / Maria Giulia Dondero, Jacques Fontanille ;

transla-tion, Julie Tabler.

(Language, media & education studies ; 60)

Translation of: Des images à problèmes.

Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN 978-1-897493-48-9 (pbk.)

1. Scientific illustration. 2. Communication in science.

3. Visualization. 4. Semiotics. I. Fontanille, Jacques, author

II. Tabler, Julie, translator III. Title. IV. Title: Images à

problèmes. English V. Series: Language, media & education

studies ; 60

Q222.D6513 2014 502.22 C2014-902865-2

The translation of this work from French into English and the publication

by Legas were partially financed by Liège University.

(Crédit de démarrage : « Diagramme et démonstration visuelle dans le

discours scientifique » [Starting credit: Diagram and visual

Demonstration in Scientific Discourse] (2011-2013).

http://www.legaspublishing.com

LEGAS

P. O. Box 149

3 Wood Aster Bay 5201 Dufferin Street

Mineola, New York Ottawa, Ontario

Toronto, Ontario

USA 11501

K2R 1B3

M3H 5T8

The authors would like to acknowledge the National Research Agency

group "Images et dispositifs de visualisation scientifiques" (2008-2010) for

hosting a major collective investigation on the topic of this book, as well

as program coordinator Anne Beyaert-Geslin, for organizing the

work-shops and publications associated with it. The authors also extend their

appreciation to all the participants in this scholarly investigation for their

thoughtful input. A special acknowledgement goes to our friend,

Professor Thomas Broden, who gave valuable input on the translation of

terminology, including some technical terms never before translated.

Table of Contents

F

OREWORD

A semiotic project

11

A study of scientific practices

12

Problematic images

14

An irreducible structure of experience

17

P

ART

O

NE

T

EChNOLOGiES

U

SED iN ThE

P

RODUCTiON OF ThE

R

EFERENT

1. Exploring the Visible and the Invisible

1.1. T

HE

E

XPLORATION

S

EQUENCE

23

E

xPLORATiON AND

E

NUNCiATiON

23

E

NERGy AND

L

iGhT

“E

xPLORE

” M

ATTER AND

B

ODiES

28

E

xPLORATiON

V

iA

S

CiENTiFiC AND

M

EDiCAL

i

MAGiNG

31

1.2. E

XPLORATION

, I

CONIZATION AND

R

EFERENTIALIZATION

32

M

ODES OF

E

xPLORATiON

32

x-ray photography

32

Computerized tomography scanning

33

Scintigraph

33

Magnetic resonance imaging

34

Ultrasonography

35

Optical microscopy

36

Scanning tunneling microscopy

36

T

hE

T

ENSiONS

B

ETwEEN

i

CONizATiON AND

R

EFERENTiALizATiON

37

2. The Paradoxical “Realism” of Scientific Imaging

2.1. I

NTRODUCTION

41

2.2. R

EALISM

D

ERAILED

43

T

hE

A

GENTS OF

E

VERyDAy

R

EALiSM

43

T

hE

A

GENTS OF

“P

OSiTiViST

” S

CiENTiFiC

R

EALiSM

44

i

CONiC

D

RiFT AND

“M

yThiCAL

” R

EALiSM

46

P

RACTiCAL

R

EALiSM

49

P

RACTiCAL

R

EDUCTiON AND

F

AMiLiARizATiON

50

The dual semiotic function

50

Familiarization and functional reduction

51

3. The Moment of Iconization:

Cognitive Tactics and Interpretive Adjustments

3.1. I

NTRODUCTION

55

3.2. I

MAGE

I

NSTANTIATION

T

ECHNIQUES

56

i

NqUiRy

, S

TABiLizATiON

, S

TANDARDizATiON

56

i

CONizATiON AND MEREOLOGy

59

3.3. T

HE

S

TRATEGIC

A

DJUSTMENTS

U

SED IN THE

Q

UEST FOR

F

IGURATION

63

D

iSTAL

A

DjUSTMENT AND

S

TRUCTURAL

A

DjUSTMENT

63

iconic instability and disabling the point of view

63

Distal adjustment

65

Structural adjustment

67

Subliminal adjustment and imaginal adjustment

67

Subliminal adjustment

68

imaginal adjustment

69

A M

ODEL FOR

A

DjUSTiNG

C

OGNiTiVE

i

NTERACTiONS

71

3.4. A

ESTHETICS AND

E

THICS OF

S

CIENTIFIC

I

MAGING

74

S

TANDARDS

, P

RACTiCES

,

AND

M

ODULATiONS

74

A

ESThETiC

C

ONTEMPLATiON AND ThE

C

ONTiNUiTy

OF

P

hySiCAL

w

ORLDS

75

T

RANSFORMATiONS OF ThE

P

OiNT OF

V

iEw

AND

i

SOTOPiC

C

ONSERVATiON

77

3.5. C

ONCLUSION

83

P

ART

T

wO

T

hE

i

MAGE iN ThE

G

ENRES OF

S

CiENTiFiC

L

iTERATURE

1. From Research Article to Popular Dissemination

1.1. B

LACK

H

OLES IN

R

ESEARCH

A

RTICLES

89

D

iAGRAMS AND

S

iMULATED

P

hOTOGRAPhy

90

F

ROM

E

qUATiON TO

V

iSUALizATiON

93

T

hE

M

ANiPULABLE

S

PACE OF ThE

D

iAGRAM

96

T

hE

D

iAGRAM AS A

V

iSUAL

E

xPERiMENT

98

1.2. D

ISSEMINATION STRATEGIES

100

S

iMULATED

P

hOTOGRAPhy

:

B

ETwEEN ThE

A

LLOGRAPh AND ThE

A

UTOGRAPh

100

S

iMULATED

P

hOTOGRAPhy AND

S

PiRiT

P

hOTOGRAPhy

102

A

RT iN

S

EARCh OF ThE

F

OUNDATiONS OF

S

CiENTiFiC

R

ESEARCh

103

1.3. C

ODA

: A

RT AND

M

ATHEMATICS

109

C

UBiST

P

REAMBLE

110

A

RT AND

M

AThEMATiCS iN ThE

R

EPRESENTATiON OF ThE

U

NiVERSE

111

A

RT

i

MAGES AS A

C

ONTRiBUTiON TO

M

AThEMATiCS

112

A

RTiST

’

S

i

MPRESSiONS AND

M

AThEMATiCS

114

h

Ow

A

RTiSTiC

O

UTPUT iS

M

AThEMATizED

117

2. Image Series and Scientific Argumentation.

Establishing a Montage Type as Part of an

Institutional Strategy

2.1. P

REAMBLE

: S

TUDY

O

BJECTIVES AND

F

OCUS

119

2.2. T

HE

A

RGUMENTATIVE

C

HALLENGES OF THE

A

RTICLE

120

S

UMMARy OF ThE

A

RGUMENTATiON

120

S

TAGE

1: Macroscopic behavior at

very high temperatures

120

S

TAGE

2: The multi-scalar nature of

textured composites

121

S

TAGE

3: Scale identification and key behaviors

121

D

iSCUSSiON OF ThE BASiC LiNE OF ARGUMENTATiON

123

2.3. T

HE

V

ISUAL

T

YPES

124

T

hE

T

EChNiCAL

T

yPES

124

T

hE

S

EMiOTiC

T

yPES

125

Texture images

126

Energy images

126

Concept images

127

Profile images

127

2.4. T

HE

R

HETORICAL

O

RGANIZATION OF THE

I

MAGES

129

V

iSUAL

S

EqUENCES

129

H

OMO

-

SEMIOTIC

S

EQUENCES

130

H

ETERO

-

SEMIOTIC

S

EQUENCES

131

Marginal hetero-semiotic sequences

132

Radical hetero-semiotic sequences

133

h

Ow ThE

i

MAGES AND

F

iGURE

S

EqUENCES

C

ONTRiBUTE TO ThE

A

RGUMENTATiON

136

2.5. C

ONCLUSION

138

P

ART

T

hREE

S

CiENTiFiC

i

MAGES AND

S

ChEMATizATiON

1. The Diagram: Between Mathematics and Visualization

1.1. P

REAMBLE

: S

CHEMAS VS

. D

IAGRAMS

143

1.2. T

HE

D

IAGRAM

A

CCORDING TO

P

EIRCE

144

T

hE

D

iAGRAM AS AN

i

NSTRUMENT OF

M

ANiPULATiON

144

P

hOTOGRAPhiC

D

iAGRAMS

149

1.3. P

HOTOGRAPHY AS A

T

OOL OF

S

CIENCE

150

1.4. T

HE

D

IAGRAM

: S

TRADDLING

A

UTOGRAPHY AND

A

LLOGRAPHY

154

1.5. F

ROM

P

HOTOGRAPHY TO

G

EOMETRIC

T

RANSLATION

156

T

hE

j

OURNEy FROM ThE

T

RACE TO ThE

T

yPE

156

F

ROM

P

hOTO TO

G

RAPhiC

159

F

ROM

D

RAwiNG TO

D

iAGRAM

163

2. Narrative “problems” and iconic solutions:

the semiotic status of mathematical curves

2.1. T

HE

N

ARRATIVE

I

NTERPRETATION OF

M

ATHEMATICAL

P

ROBLEM

U

TTERANCES

169

2.2. T

HE

P

ROBLEM AT

H

AND

:

THE

S

EMIOTICS OF

C

HANGE AND THE

E

VOLUTIONARY

P

ROFILE

171

2.3. W

HY IS THE

V

ISUAL

E

XPRESSION OF THE

S

OLUTION A

C

URVE

?

174

2.4. T

HE

S

EMIOTIC

A

NALYSIS OF

“P

ROFILE

T

YPES

”

AND

C

URVES

177

T

hE

P

LANE OF

E

xPRESSiON

AND ThE

P

LANE OF

C

ONTENT OF ThE

C

URVE

177

T

hE

T

UG

-

OF

-

wAR

B

ETwEEN

P

ROGRAMS AND

C

OUNTER

-

PROGRAMS

181

2.5. A T

YPOLOGY OF

C

URVES

182

2.6. F

INAL

R

EMARKS

:

THE

C

OMPOSITION OF

E

VOLVING

P

ROFILES

187

CONCLUSiONS

193

BiBLiOGRAPhiC

REFERENCES

197